I’ve decided that it’s time for a few recipes. I’ve been sitting on these for a while now. In fact, I made the pudding in the summer, as you’ll see by the green plants in the background of the picture – the ground is now covered in snow. The second recipe is a wintery ice cream. It’s very different from the ice creams I’m used to making, and more in keeping in line with my latest dietary needs. In both cases I’ve used young coconut as a base. I love its versatility!

Mint and vanilla are one of my favorite flavor combinations. They don’t necessarily appear to be a match, but there is just something about these ingredients that works well together. It’s my favorite Moonie Pie flavor too – you’ll see that the mint filling is actually filled with both vanilla and mint.

Speaking of moonie pies, a funny thing happened today. Philip is in England right now and while he was dining at Saf Restaurant, he saw a moonie pie on their dessert menu (he even snapped a pic of it written on the menu, for me, hehe). He never tried it or saw the actual dessert, but we found it interesting. I’ll take it as a compliment.

This recipe is fairly low glycemic, with coconut and stevia as the sweeteners. I like to use both fresh mint and it’s essential oil to balance the flavors and make them come to life. If you don’t have the essential oil use a natural extract, but the oil is superior in quality and taste. Like the mint, I use two kinds of vanilla (the seeds of the fresh bean, and a natural extract) to achieve a more multi dimensional taste.

I’m in love… with my latest creation – Cinnamon Marshmallow Mousse. It’s fluffy, springy, soft and downright delicious. I guess I’m on a bit of a kick, since I posted a Dark Chocolate Mousse only days ago. This one is inspired by the Cinnamon Chaga Mousse that I made a few months ago.

I’ll be teaching a raw dessert class in Adelaide on Sunday March 6th! I’m so excited about this. It will be my second class in Australia, as I will also be teaching in Byron Bay. Here’s the info: Continue Reading / Additional Photos / Videos

Blueberries – nature’s candy and nature’s medicine, packed with antioxidants, fiber, and vitamin C. I just happen to live in blueberry country. It’s one of the few perks of living in the north. Every year I battle the bears out in the old logging roads to pick pails and pails of berries. I gobble them up in their natural state, in addition to using them in smoothies and desserts, before freezing heaps of them to enjoy throughout the year.

The taste of wild berries can’t be compared to store bought ones – in fact, I never buy them because I know what the REAL ones taste like. I often invite my raw food friends up to my little corner in northwestern Ontario, Canada to partake in my wild adventures, so consider this an invite to join in my summer berry expeditions!

I hope you’ll give this blueberry cheesecake a try. It’s delicious with the cardamom but you could easily omit it if you’re not a fan.

Green soup is great any time of year, and a tasty way to consume protein rich greens! Raw soups in general are cost effective, nutrient dense, and filling from all the fiber and water.

Play around! Even one ingredient change can make a huge flavor change, so the sky is the limit here. I also like adding a bit of tomato, or whatever happens to be in season. Avocado provides some body and creaminess to the soup, herbs give heaps of flavor, and a bit of lemon juice or apple cider vinegar adds a bit of acidity to balance flavors. Always remember to add a little something salty, like himalayan or sea salt, nama shoyu, or seaweed, to bring out all flavors.

Occasionally I like to garnish my soups with crunchy, flavored seeds. I like to make big batches to keep on hand. They store for ages in the fridge!

For Canadian thanksgiving, I made mini vegan pumpkin pies. For years I’ve made raw pumpkin pies, trying sweet potatoes, pumpkin, squash, carrot juice/nut combo – but I have to say, I prefer this cooked style. Enjoy it with a big dollop of the coconut whipped cream that I featured in my previous recipe post.

What’s so great about this pie? First, there are no nuts in the filling, making it far easier for me to digest (and good digestion is the name of the game for me these days more than ever). Instead I’ve used the natural creaminess of the cooked pumpkin along with healthy raw ingredients to create a delicious pie.

Secondly, this is a low glycemic dessert, using a small amount of coconut sugar in conjunction with stevia to sweeten it.

What makes it a “mousse” pie? I’ve suped it up with irish moss and coconut oil to give it a light, fluffy moussey texture. In fact, I’ve made this a few times already, that’s how much I like it, and it holds well as a cheesecake and as a simple mousse/pudding too! Whatever you choose, I’m fairly certain you’ll enjoy :)

I love love love mulberries. They’re one of my top three favorite dried fruits, and are like sweet, chewy candies without the refined sugar. I was fortunate enough to taste fresh mulberries a few summers ago, and wow, what a treat! Mulberries are high in antioxidants and a rich source of vitamin C and iron, so get your snack on! I keep a stash of these dried gems in my purse for emergency snacking purposes, and I particularly enjoy mixing them into dark raw chocolate. They also make a fabulous topping for ice cream – when they’re cold, they’re crunchy! For a great breakfast cereal, toss them with dehydrated buckwheat, cacao nibs, and drizzle it all with cold almond milk. Yum!

Recently I was inspired to turn these goodies into a creamy, luscious mousse! I use irish moss to thicken and “fluff” the mixture. Irish moss is a seaweed rich in minerals, and is high in protein, calcium, iron, magnesium, in addition to other nutrients. It also acts as a skin nourisher and softener, so make extra irish moss gel and wear it as a face mask! Continue Reading / Additional Photos / Videos

Today I’ve got a tasty ice cream dessert recipe to share, which has the added benefit of the medicial chaga mushroom (although it’s optional). I did a post on chaga last year and included a Chaga Maple Frosty recipe in addition to mentioning some of it’s benefits. I’m fortunate to live in an area where chaga grows in abundance all year around.

I made this ice cream last week, since a friend was over for dinner and I wanted to do a little something special. What to do with a few young coconuts, some ripe mushy persimmons, fresh ginger, and a bunch of soaked irish moss?! Here’s what I came up with. It would also be great with a chocolate sauce, or orange segments in place in place of the persimmon jelly. Continue Reading / Additional Photos / Videos

Fresh mint makes the best desserts! I admit, I’m not much of a gardener, but I do have an outdoor summer herb garden which includes peppermint, spearmint, and chocolate mint. It not only tastes delicious, it’s a cooling digestive aid! I love to make full use of my mint during the warm weather, and and what goes better with mint than chocolate, come on, really. Everyone is with me on this one right?

This tart incorporates a chocolate nut crust with a silky, green mint cream filling. I like the combination of fresh mint leaves and mint essential oil, but feel free to use more of only one or the other. Still want to enjoy the tart but don’t have access to fresh mint leaves? Use the essential oil and a dash of spirulina for a soft green color.

I love to enjoy this dessert with guests on a hot, sunny afternoon, along with cold mint tea.

Ever since I was a child, I’ve loved food, particularly the sweet stuff. I come by it honestly, since my mom’s favorite food is chocolate. I grew up on a pretty “Standard American Diet”. You know, cereal with milk for breakfast, peanut butter (fortunately the natural kind) & jelly sandwiches for lunch, and chicken/veggies/potato for dinner. My favorite treat was ice cream and my mom’s freshly baked chocolate chip cookies!

When I was 14, my mom gave me the book Fit For Life to read, after incorporating some of the principles into her life. I’m not sure what prompted her to give me the book, but I devoured it – and became a vegetarian over night! Not only that, I gave up most dairy products too. Imagine a teenager eliminating 70% of the foods they’ve grown up on?! While everyone else at high school was eating burgers, chocolate bars, soda pop, and ice cream, I was eating my perfectly combined meals most of the time (although I was a candy-aholic on weekends). Fresh fruit for breakfast, fruit/veggies/or homemade soup for lunch, and veggies with either rice, squash, or pasta, for dinner. For a while I just ate fruit – I thought, “why eat anything else when you can eat healthy sweet stuff all the time?” (NOT a great idea as I learned later on). Remember that Sesame Street song “One of these things is not like the other, one of these things just doesn’t belong…” Ummmm yeah, I felt like an outcast.